Chapter 1

In the middle of the woods, surrounded on all sides by trees and bushes and critters of all shapes and sizes, a girl lays quietly, asleep across the peaceful ground.

All around her, the animals of the woods cautiously move, afraid to approach her, all except for a single squirrel. Bravely, this squirrel skitters from the treetops, moving towards the girl.

As it lands on the ground softly, hardly making a sound, it slowly moves towards her, moving right up to the girls face. All the other animals almost lean forward in anticipation, curious as to what might happen.

Curiously, the squirrel sniffs at her, smelling her and seeing if any food is around her. Not smelling anything, it jumps onto her, crawling across her body in its curious search.

Feeling the sudden weight, the girls eyes shoot open, startling the squirrel. Quickly, it skitters away.

The girl blinked once, then twice, then a third time. From where she lay, the treetops opened up before her eyes, a dazzling sight to wake up to.

Slowly, she lifts her hand upwards, almost as if trying to reach at the tree tops far beyond her fingertips. The next moment, her hand drops. At the sound of her hand hitting the ground, all the animals around her scattered.

Again, she blinks once more, almost as if trying to recognize her environment. Confusion is appearing on her face, but no fear. Instead, she seems genuinely curious where she is, and not the least bit afraid.

Lightning fast, she suddenly sits up, turning her head from side to side with a quiet grunt as she looked around her. Trees and bushes were all her eyes met after the critters scattered from the sudden movement.

Next, she stood herself up, slowly this time. A gentle breeze blows past her, carrying her long, silvery white hair as it passes.

Her face almost seems to be asking, 'Where am I?' as she stands there, spinning like a top freshly spun, unable to stop for just a moment. She almost seems to feel dizzy as she spins without pause, yet she easily maintains her balance, almost as if she were a dancer.

Should she stay here? Should she move? Finally she paused, seeming to consider the questions before her.

She doesn't know where she is, how she got here, or where she should go. Maybe someone would come looking for her? No, surely she would remember. Perhaps her best bet would be to set out?

Her hand rubbed her chin lightly as she squinted her ruby red eyes, carefully considering her options.

Does she really have any choice though?

...

She shakes her head. She does not.

Knowing things will probably work out, she sets off in the opposite direction the critters ran. After all, why would they run in the direction of people if they hid from her?

Thinking this, she walked the opposite direction, her best bet at finding anyone in these quiet woods.

As she walks, she carefully notes her environment. Trees, bushes, more trees, some grass, more bushes... Nothing useful.

She almost sighs in defeat as she walks, but suddenly, something catches her eye. A stick, one fairly straight and sharp on the edge where it snapped from its tree.

Without much thought, she picks it off of the ground, shaking the dirt off of it.

It's sturdy.

She sharply swings it at a tree, yet it holds, not bending in the slightest. It almost feels as if she's holding a real sword.

Happily, she moves it to her side, as if she were sheathing it, but is quickly surprised by what she sees.

A real sword, not some silly stick, but a real, sharp, dangerous sword is sheathed at her waist. It sits in a leather scabbard, one worn from much use. She drops the stick and pulls the sword half out, examining the mysterious blade. Shiny and sharp. A real sword indeed.

The sword has a reddish gleam as it catches the light from the sun that is shining through the treetops. An unusual gleam for a silver sword to have. Is it stained with blood?

She squints her eyes at the sword, examining it while keeping it within its scabbard, but no amount of looking can truly answer her question. Maybe it's just a special sword?

She should probably keep it, right?

Yes, she probably should. After all, who knows what might be in these woods? On top of that, it was tied to her waist. Even if she can't remember why it's there, it must be important if she has it.

Nodding, she secures the sword completely within its scabbard.

"Uhh, hello there..?"

The girl spun on her feet, moving on instinct. Before she even knew what was happening, she had drawn the sword and pointed it the mysterious voice.

A man.

He seems just as surprised as she is, holding his hand cautiously to the side as the sword waves dangerously close to his face.

"Are you... Lost?"

He carefully asks the question, his eyes glancing around him as he looks for anyone else nearby, someone that might have been traveling with the girl.

"From the village perhaps?"

This time he looks at her, taking notice of her appearance. A dirty white dress. A sword tied around the waist. No shoes or socks. A girl in the woods, entirely alone.

"Can you put the sword down? I mean you no harm."

The girl only squints her eyes at the man, clearly suspicious. No fear or anxiety appeared on her face. In fact, she almost seems pleasantly surprised behind the suspicion.

She found someone, and much faster than she thought she would.

"Please?" the man pleaded. Even though she was just a girl, he could not ignore the threat of a sword in his face.

The girl thought for a moment longer.

He's no threat. He has no weapons, he seems alarmed, and he has no fighting aura. She can put her weapon away.

Concluding this, girl slowly sheathed her sword.